Hospital boss sorry for car park muddle
A health chief has apologised to residents for the "confusion and uncertainty" created by plans to build two car parks at a hospital site near their Wolverhampton homes.
A health chief has apologised to residents for the "confusion and uncertainty" created by plans to build two car parks at a hospital site near their Wolverhampton homes.
People living in the vicinity of New Cross Hospital fear that the development will intrude on their privacy and affect their security but Gary Penn, the hospital's director of estates and development, insisted at a meeting last night that the extra parking was necessary due to a 15 to 20 per cent increase in the number of patients at the hospital.
The Royal Wolverhampton Hospitals NHS Trust has applied to the council to build fenced-off car parks behind the Ashes flats and next to the School of Nursing, to accommodate 86 spaces for staff experiencing difficulty parking on the main 1,800-space Wednesfield site.
The proposals have been put forward to put an end to people leaving their cars in nearby residential streets.
The car parks are due to last for five to 10 years as part of a major redevelopment of the site.
About 20 residents attended the meeting, held at the hospital's Medical Institute, and complained that they had not been consulted about the plans.
Bus driver Stephen Smith, aged 50, said building work had already begun but Mr Penn said it was only "investigative".
Factory worker John Potts, 40, office worker Kim Fawcett and pensioner Vivienne Matthews, who all live in Victoria Road, said they were concerned that a car park so close to their homes would attract criminals.
"Building a 6ft panelled fence is not going to keep out the criminal element. There's also the issue of lights, noise, door slamming and people milling about," Mr Potts said.
Residents were assured that the lights would be on 4metre-high poles instead of the usual 6m columns, with the light directed downwards, and that CCTV cameras would be installed.
Mr Penn said: "We have genuine concerns about our neighbours but we have to make provision for the additional staff taken on to look after the increased number of patients, and it is important that they have adequate lighting to get to their cars."
He said construction work would be halted at weekends after residents complained of machinery noise from 8am on Saturdays.
